Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Mint today reported strong early sales of the George Washington Gold Five Dollar Coin celebrating the life and achievements and commemorating the 200th anniversary of the death of George Washington.
Ten weeks after the coin went on sale, total sales have reached 51,726 coins – more than half the maximum authorized mintage of 100,000 – including 33,435 proof coins and 18,291 uncirculated coins. Sales by individual options total 18,806 proof coins; 3,662 uncirculated coins and 14,629 Two Coin Sets.
Sales of the George Washington $5 Gold Coin after ten weeks are 34 percent higher than the 1997 Franklin D. Roosevelt $5 Gold Coin and the highest since the 1995 Civil War Battlefield $5 Gold Coin ten week total of 56,455.
In addition, sales of the Dolly Madison Commemorative Silver Dollar now total 277,894 coins, 27 weeks after the program was launched, 47 percent higher than the Robert F. Kennedy Commemorative Silver Dollar total of 189,523 coins for the same period in 1998. The Dolley Madison Silver Dollar is the strongest silver commemorative since the 1995 Civil War Battlefield Silver Dollar with sales of 376,400 coins.
“Sales of the George Washington and Dolley Madison commemoratives this year suggest that we’re finally turning the corner in the U.S. commemorative coin market,” said Mint Director Philip N. Diehl. “The Commemorative Coin Reform Act of 1996 is having its intended effect: fewer programs, lower mintages, and higher secondary market values. We’ve added stronger designs to the mix, and as a result, collectors are starting to return to modern commems.”
Sales of the Dolley Madison Silver Dollar include 197,985 proof coins and 79,909 uncirculated coins. Sales by individual options total 137,779 proof coins; 19,703 uncirculated coins and 60,206 Two Coin Sets.
A portion of the proceeds from sales of the coin are authorized to be used by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association for preservation of George Washington’s Mount Vernon and to educate the American people about this great man and his incomparable gifts to his nation.
The George Washington Commemorative Gold Five–Dollar proof coin is available at $225; the uncirculated version for $205; and the proof and uncirculated set for $399. The Dolley Madison Commemorative Silver Dollar, celebrating one of the nation’s most famous first ladies, proof coin is available for $37, the uncirculated coin for $32 and the Proof and Uncirculated Set for $64.95. Proceeds from sales of the coin are authorized to be used by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to maintain Montpelier, James and Dolley Madison’s Virginia home.
For information about how to order the George Washington $5 Gold Coin and the Dolley Madison Commemorative Silver Dollar, call 1–800–USA–MINT or visit the Mint’s website at www.USMINT.GOV.